TNT Texters rout Kings, move to 2nd

MANILA, Philippines — TNT KaTropa fought with great resolve in a virtual playoff duel with Barangay Ginebra last night, pulling off a decisive 121-92 victory that shoved the Texters to second place after the penultimate play date of the PBA Governors Cup elimination round at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.

Glen Rice Jr., Jason Castro, Troy Rosario and Kelly Williams all churned out big games as the Texters turned to a rout what was expected to be a dogfight, and closed out their elims stint at 8-3.

Their 29-point demolition of the Gin Kings all but sealed TNT’s Top Four finish that will reward them a twice-to-beat incentive in the quarterfinals.

Earlier in this Petron Blaze Saturday Special, Rain or Shine crushed Blackwater, 122-98, to finish at 7-4.

The Elasto Painters gain a piece of fourth place if both San Miguel Beer and NLEX lose their games against Meralco and Star, respectively, at the close of the elims tonight, also at the Big Dome.

On the other hand, victories by San Miguel and NLEX will forge a five-way logjam from first-to-fifth among the Beermen, the Road Warriors, the Texters, the Bolts and the Gin Kings at 8-3.

In this scenario, the Kings are in danger of being relegated to fifth spot because of their losses to the Bolts (by 15), to the Beermen (by four) and to the Texters.

The Kings found themselves in a precarious spot after the blowout they suffered on TNT’s torrid shooting led by Rice and Castro with six three-pointers each.

The TNT team sizzled with 17 treys in all as they badly beat the Gin Kings from the second quarter onwards.

“We’ve always talked about everybody pitching in for us to be successful. I think today, the players were focused on the task and they were all ready to contribute,” said TNT coach Nash Racela.

“It really helped us that we shot really well. If you shoot that way, you really have a good chance,” added Racela.

Rice finished with a game-high 36 points, Castro ended up with a total of 28 while Rosario and Williams both collected double-double numbers, with the former delivering 15 points and 10 rebounds, and the latter adding 10 markers and 11 boards.

Earlier, the E-Painters also struck hard from the long court in their own demolition of Blackwater.

The Elite wound up with a 5-6 card for eighth place. They’re playing the top seed in the quarterfinals.

The scores:

First Game

RAIN OR SHINE 122 – Bullock 30, Almazan 20, Norwood 15, Ahanmisi 12, Trollano 11, Daquioag 11, Belga 5, King 5, Matias 4, Ponferada 3, Maiquez 2, Robles 2, Borboran 2.

BLACKWATER 98 – Maliksi 29, Walker 21, Canaleta 15, Erram 14, Digregorio 9, Sumang 6, Belo 2, Sena 2, Miranda 0, Pinto 0, Cruz 0, Marcelo.

Quarterscores: 30-21, 57-56, 89-77, 122-98

Second Game

TNT 121 – Rice Jr. 36, Castro 28, Rosario 15, Pogoy 15, Williams 10, Semerad 4, Chua 4, Golla 3, Carey 2, Tautuaa 2, Seigle 2, Nuyles 0, Hernandez 0, Reyes 0, Lingganay 0.

GINEBRA 92 – Bronwlee 28, Aguilar J. 19, Thompson 9, Devance 7, Tenorio 6, Mercado 6, Slaughter 4, Caguioa 4, Aguilar R. 4, Ferrer 3, Cruz 2, Mariano 0, Taha 0.

Quarterscores: 30-31, 57-49, 88-71, 121-92